Prawns
The Prawns of District 9 are a spacefaring race of sentient beings, with highly advanced technology and spaceship engineering who calling themselves the Poleepkwa. Their reasons for coming and/or colonizing on Earth are unknown so far. The non-humans are bipedal, several feet taller than humans, and have dark thick shell-like skin as well as a mass of facial tendrils. It is hypothesized that these tendrils are somehow involved in the mastication process, but it has not been proven. These aliens are also very strong. At one point in the movie, a prawn takes hold of an MNU soldier's arms, and places his foot on his chest. He kicks outward, resulting in the soldier's arms being ripped off, as well as sending him flying several yards back. In another scene, a prawn lifts and flips an overweight MNU guard upside down. He throws the guard several feet through the air, causing him to smash into the side of a shack. The name "Prawn" is a derogatory term used for the non-humans. It comes from the resemblance their faces bear to that of a local pest in Johannesburg, the Parktown Prawn, and is meant to imply that they are bottom feeders, scavenging about and living off of the waste of everybody else. In District 9, the prawns are greatly oppressed by the MNU Security Force, and generally hated and feared by the local humans as MNU makes up several stories that have slandered them. They have very little rights in District 9, all of which are closely monitored, regulated, and enforced by MNU. Physiology Prawns are bipedal sentient beings with a structure that bears a strong resemblance to arthropods. They have exoskeletons and a more insect-like build, possessing clawed mandibles, antennae, and segmented exoskeleton plating which MNU officers need armor-penetrating rounds to crack. Usually, non-humans are dark, earth-toned colors. However, some of them have bright red, yellow, or blue striped patterns across their bodies. They don't possess a human concept of modesty, but sunlight on Earth is apparently more intense (or contains a higher UV level) than they are used to, so those living in District 9 often try to protect their outer carapace with scraps of clothing, or at least bodypaint. They also possess another pair of arms which reside around the abdominal area, but their use is currently unknown and has yet to be seen. Non-humans also have brought creatures to Earth that resemble insects. The Non-Humans also have their hearts located on the opposite side compared to a human. Prawns, unlike humans, eat almost all of their food raw. They appear to be primarily carnivorous, as per the large amount of meat dealers in District 9. They also have a very strong liking of cat food, which has an effect on the aliens that is similar to the effect of catnip on cats. In many deals with the local human gangs, Prawns will trade their weapons and technology in exchange for cat food. When purchasing their food, the prawns are more often than not ripped off. Dealers overprice the meats and cat food, making it hard for the non-humans to get food. When buying food is not an option, they will rummage through garbage in search of anything edible. Another unusual eating habit is their enjoyment of rubber. Prawns have been seen fighting over car tires because they enjoy the taste and texture of this material (Wikus explains that chewing car tire rubber is sort of like "a big marshmallow" to them, but whether they can actually digest the rubber, or gain nutrition from it, is unclear). Prawns reproduce asexually, meaning each individual possesses both male and female reproductive organs, and are capable of self fertilization. This makes their reproductive capabilities somewhat threatening, and has allowed their population to increase quickly, despite MNU attempts to limit the amount of offspring produced by aborting eggs and licensing young. Once an egg has been laid, it will be connected to a food source (such as a dead cow or pig) via tubes, and in this way the developing Prawn will be nourished. Parents can be extremely protective of their eggs, and MNU officers avoid aborting while the parent is present to prevent violent confrontation. It is worth noting that the presence of inter-species prostitution within District 9 indicates that Prawns are capable of intercourse (as are most hermaphroditic species of Earth, ie. snails), and may have some reproductive structures similar to humans. Society According to David Meng of Weta Workshop, the vast majority of the aliens are worker-class "drones", explaining why they were so lost and ineffectual. Christopher Johnson is one notable exception to this rule. None of this non-human social structure made it into the film. In his previous film "Alive in Joburg " which inspired District 9, the aliens referred to themselves as Poleepkwa. Interested parties have contacted the director on whether or not this term can be officially applied. Homeworld The Homeworld of the Prawns is mentioned to have 7 moons, it is also noted by Christopher to his son that it is several times bigger than Earth. Due to the fact that the Prawns can breath earths oxygen atmosphere, it is very likely that their Homeworld has very similar conditions as on earth. This would also explain why the Prawns landed on Earth instead of any other nearby planets on their route. However no hints are made in the movie where this Homeworld is exactly located or wether it is the only world inhabited by his Species. At the End of the Movie, Christopher can be seen guiding a navigational system in his craft, which shows a map of several galaxy-like structures, implying the Prawn Homeworld may be not located in the Milky Way. It is also shown that the Homeworld is located in a globular cluster. Technology The non-humans have a variety of extremely-powerful energy weapons. The weapons can only be activated by alien DNA, which means that no human can use them (with the sole exception of Wikus). The weapons shown in the film are mostly energy-based, but several clips prove otherwise, for example, at one point, Christopher can be seen using one that appears to handle like an assault rifle when he and Wikus stormed MNU headquarters. Wikus uses a gun in the Nigerian gang base capable of producing a shockwave blast powerful enough to blast a human through a wall at high speeds. Even a near miss can send someone flying through the air as shown in the film. Another weapon of note is a large alien mech that Wikus piloted near the end of the film. The suit appears to have a number of other alien weapon capabilities integrated into it, along with a magnetic field generator that allows it to catch enemy projectiles and launch them right back at the enemy. The most well known weapon is the ARC gun. It fires a huge charge of electricity and rapid molecular expansion of gas and fluid. In a soft biological target, an ARC gun strike can result in a catastrophic explosion of blood and gore. But even a near miss can cause superficial burns and keep an enemy subdued. The Fluid is a liquid that seems to fuel everything that the Prawns use like their weapons and ships. The Fluid probably powers their everyday technology on their home planet. It also seems to contain prawn DNA, where the observed effects of coming into contact with Wikus seemed to initiate a genetic reaction, eventually resulting in his apparent transformation into a Prawn. It seems 1 canister of The Fluid can power a whole ship for hyperspace. Weaponry The ARC Gun, also referred to as a Mulcher, is an extraterrestrial weapon, and as such only works in the hands of a non-human or Wikus. The weapon utilizes highly dangerous protonic current which has a high damage radius and damage capability. Upon direct contact with a biological entity, one hit from the weapon causes the entity to superheat and explode in a violent, swift, and often messy manner. Although a direct hit is the most effective, even minor superficial damage from the weapon can yield fatal results such as horrible burns and even dismemberment. The AMR-B07 functions like a human flamethrower. The flames are green in color and burns like normal fire. It made its debut when MNU was using hybrid Wikus to test alien weapons by shooting pigs and a Prawn. This weapon is very similar to the non-human grenade launcher, used by Wikus when attacking the MNU headquarters. The AMR-B05 is a fully automatic Prawn weapon. The weapon works as an automatic or assault rifle. The tubes down the side each discharge an explosive burst of gas one after the other down the length of the barrel behind the projectile - a linear accelerator gun, like a rail gun but without the magnets. Of course it would fire these all rapidly to get a high rate of fire. The Mortar Launcher launches small canisters that causes gigantic explosions even bigger than the AMR-B13. Wikus used it to blow a hole in the MNU building. The AMR-B43 '''is a repulsor-type weapon, that stabilizes sound and projects it at desired enemies. Wikus used this weapon to defend himself from a group of Nigerians. It is sometimes referred to as the "Sonic Blaster". The '''AMR-B15 is a device that can cause huge explosions. MNU scientists forced Wikus to fire on an innocent Prawn with this weapon. A Prawn Bomb is a bomb made by prawns. They are easy to make as Christopher made a prawn bomb very quickly in MNU headquarters. The prawn bomb is apparently made from spare prawn weapon parts and several unknown explosives. When the bomb is activated it makes a beeping sounds which goes off during detonation and creates a large electric like explosion similair to the ARC gun's. Vehicles The Drop-Ship was the command module to the Mother-Ship, which has the ability to pilot the Mother-Ship; without actually being attached to it. It was probably programmed by Christopher to detach itself from the mother-ship, due to the fact that it was found underneath Christopher's shack. In the middle of the film, Wikus piloted the drop-ship to be attached with the mother-ship, but in the middle of the process, the ship was shot down and Wikus was captured by the First Reaction Battalion. It appears that Christopher's son has the knowledge to pilot the command module. The Bio-Suit (also called a mech prawn), as the name says, is a mech used by the Prawns to defend, attack or help in construction and repairs. The appearance of the bio-suit in District 9 is greatly changed from that of the short film. The suit now appears to be more of a mechanized piece of equipment, and is much larger than the bio-suits of Alive in Joburg. Instead of simply wearing the suit as one would with the bio-suits of the short film, the new suits have a central chamber in the thoracic cavity of the machine where the operator resides. Inside the machine, the operator has complete control over a wide variety of tools and weapons on the suit which are all controlled via the highly advanced heads-up display. The mechanized suit could presumably be used for tasks such as ship and technology repairs, but the suit also has a wide arsenal of highly dangerous offensive and defensive weapons. The suit has been shown to posses a larger version of the ARC gun, a machine gun, rocket launchers and a metal spike that drives into the enemy and sends a charge through them that eventually causes them to explode. The suit can also activate certain weapons on its own when a prawn (or one with prawn DNA) is attacked. Once it eliminates all threats to the threatened prawn, the cockpit opens allowing the prawn to climb in and use the mech for self-defense. The bio-suit has an in-built AI auto-pilot, but the motion of the suit in this state is more robotic. The bio-suit is totally interactive with the driver when used, for example when Wikus is damaged using the suit, a fluid sprays and the suit walks lame like a damaged creature. When the bio-suit is activated in the film, it quickly dealt with Wikus's human attackers, identifying only him as having prawn DNA. It then presents itself for his use, maybe because the reactions of the AI are not as effective as those of the non-humans. The weapons on the suit (or at least the ones that have been seen being operated) appear to be similar to standard alien weaponry, but they are integrated into the suit. A variant of the ARC Gun, a chaingun-like weapon, and missiles are the weapons that have been seen on the bio-suit. A strange defensive mechanism is also present on the suit which appears to be a telekinetic field. This magnetic field can completely control the paths of bullets and other objects, making the suit nearly untouchable by firearms. Once the mechanism has gained control over an object or objects, it possesses the ability to launch the objects back at targets with great accuracy and velocity. Wikus uses this tool to launch a pig at attacking MNU forces and launch the bullets of the Nigerians back to them. The suit appears to need a direct connection to the mind of the operator as when Wikus starts it up, two rods are drilled into his head, removing themselves when the exosuit breaks down. The Nigerian gang end up getting one of these from the non-humans as part of an attempt to trade for food. During the end of the film, Little CJ activates it as the Nigerians are about to kill and eat Wikus. The suit automaticaly kills all of the Nigerians and opens itself to Wikus. Finding himself surronded, Wikus uses the suit to escape and rescues Christopher Johnson. Wikus covers Christopher until he's close to the drop ship, but is forced to have Christopher go on without him as the suit has by that point taken a lot of damage and can't go very fast anymore. Wikus uses the suit to battle MNU's forces, killing all but their leader Venter, but after getting shot multiple times, including with a high-powered sniper rifle, had its left hand blown off by a rcoket and rammed twice with trucks, the suit breaks down and ejects Wikus. Category:Allied Faction Category:Enemy Faction Category:Species Category:Enemy Species Category:Allied Species Category:District 9